On December 15th, 2022, at exactly 1:00 am, I sprang up on my bed, ready to rip to shreds the wrapping on my ankle. It was dark and cold, so I was working blind, and sleep was evident in my eyes and burning red like lava as bags formed underneath. I was trying to put an end to this invisible and unavoidable pain and irritation. I couldn’t see it, but it was there, craving my attention like a 3-year-old crying for ice cream. Of course, this was now my life, and nothing new—just another chapter, but certainly not the whole story. I kept on telling myself over and over again to calm the storm raging in my mind. Scars! Scars! Scars were all I could see as a tiny light lit up the room at exactly 5:00 am. It seemed as though time had sped up, and it was then that it dawned on me that I’d been up way too long, and still the pain cuts so deep. I remember it like it was yesterday, and anxious yet grateful tears still fell from my eyes as I sat here and wrote this next piece.
The Holy Spirit taught me that I should embrace discomfort, and at that time I didn’t quite understand why, but as I go through my process, I realize that discomfort exists only to thrust us into something bigger than ourselves that we can’t begin to imagine or fathom. Scars aren’t only external, like healed wounds from a terrible accident, an injury, or even something from our bloodline that we can’t control. It can also be internal, like childhood trauma, mental scars, painful past experiences, flaws, shortcomings, suicide, depression, anger, and all kinds of hurt psychologically, emotionally, physically, and more so spiritually, that can leave us scarred for life.
Our scars tell a story that reminds us of where we’ve been and where we are today. Nothing is arbitrary to God; it reminds us of His undying love and favor upon our lives. Our scars make us who we are today, and the Holy Spirit wants us to embrace our scars and live with our head held high, our sight elevated as our wounds turn into scars, and scars turn into testimonies and testimonies that will encourage and inspire people to see the work of God today.
Broken crayons still color, and God wants to use our brokenness for His glory. Don’t be ashamed of your scars; embrace your battle scars; they are there for a reason, and the fact that you have them tells a much deeper story of how you overcame that fight and struggle. We are overcomers and survivors, not defeated victims. The fire comes and tries to consume us, but God takes us through it and yes, we will be wounded but not burned. EMBRACE YOUR SCARS! EMBRACE YOUR IMPERFECTIONS! SCARS CAN CHANGE THE WORLD JUST LIKE THEY CHANGE ME.